Material handling apparatus



Jan. 25, 1949. H. A. WAGNER ETAL MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed March 12, 1946 flora/d A. Wag/z fimfla're H Wagner INVENTORS ATTORNEY I Jan. 25, 1949- SH. A. WAGNER ETQAL ,9

MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed March 12, 1946 2 sheets-sheet 2 5/ v INVENTORS' ATTORNEY the line 6-5 of Fig. 5.

Patented Jam 25,1949

ilNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Harold A. Wagner and Gustave H. Wagner, Portland, Oreg.

Application March 12, 1946, Serial No. 653,745 Claims. (01. 214--117) The present invention relates to material handling apparatus and while it is not necessarily limited thereto it is particularly concerned with concrete batch hauling and distributing vehicles. 7

Concrete is usually distributed from the mixer or delivery truck to the forms by means of wheelbarrows or push carts. various types have been devised heretofore for use in distributing concrete batch but such apparatus has not been widely accepted principally because of lack of maneuverability or flexibility sufficient to meet the varied circumstances usually surrounding an ordinary construction project.

It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a new'and improved concrete batch handling vehicle which is of relatively simple inexpensive construction and which is highly maneuverable and flexible.

A further'object is to provide a new and improved concrete batch apparatus including a hopper which may be loaded directly from a mixer or delivery truck and unloaded directly into forms of varying heights.

A morespecific object is to provide a new and improved concrete hopper arrangement designed for mounting upon a supporting vehicle interchangeably with other forms of load handlin means.

A further specific object of the invention is to provide a new and improved hopper arrangement which is particularly suitable for laying concrete slabs,

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings while the features of novelty'will be pointed out with greater particularity in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a side elevation of the apparatus constructed in accordance with one form of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the concrete hopper unit and supporting carriage therefor illustrated in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a side elevation illustrating a further modification of the invention; Fig. 5 is a front view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 4 and ig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along Referring first to Fig. 1 a vehicle .is shown at lil having a pair of spaced apart front wheels 1 l, adapted'to be driven by an engine (not shown) mounted within the bodyrof the vehicle, and a Motor driven vehicles of hauling and distributing tween the side plates .wall 30, bottom wall 32 slopes rear wheel 12. The rear wheel is supported upon the lower end of a vertical column I3 to the upper end of which a tiller arm M is mounted whereby steering movements of the vehicle may be controlled;

An upright structure is provided upon the forward. end of the vehicle consisting, in this instance, of a pair of parallel, spaced apart angle members the lower ends of which are welded directly to the forward end of the vehicle body and the upper ends braced by rearwardiy extending members it. A crosshead is mounted on the upper end of t e upright including a sheave block over which is trained a cable l8 extending from a winch drum (not shown) arranged within the forward end of the vehicle body, the opposite end of which is connected to a carriage l9 mounted for vertical movement upon the upright structure.

As illustrated more clearly in the enlarged Sectional view of" Fig. 2, the carriage is comprised of a pair of parallel spaced apart side plates 20 rigidly welded to the opposite ends of a transversely extending cross member 2|. The space be- 29 is slightly greater than the width of the upright structure. Upper rollers 2| are mounted on the inner sides of the side plates 20 adjacent the upper ends thereof for riding upon the rear surfaces of the forward flanges of the angle members of the upright structure while lower rollers 22 are provided on the side plates 20 adjacent the lower ends thereof for riding upon the forward surfaces of the angle iron flanges. The lifting cable i8 is connected as indicated at 23 to'the; rear side of the cross member 21 substantially centrally thereof. A tubular member 25 is welded transversely of the carriage structure along the lower edge ofthe cross member 2| and to the forward edges of the side plates 20, the tubular member being adapted to receive a shaft therethrough for supporting different types of load receiving elements to be mounted upon the carriage.

' The load receiving element according tov the present invention consists of a hopper 29 adapted for handling loose bulk material such as concrete batch. It will be obvious, however, that while the invention is described with particular reference to concrete handling it is not to be necessarily so limited since it may be equally well'used for handling other similar material. The hopper is of generally rectangular shape at its open upper end and consists of a forward sidewalls 3i and a bottom wall 32. The

forwardly and down- 'project from a remote -ing shaft withdrawn whereupon the wardly and at its lowermost end defines in part a pouring spout 33 toward which the lower portions of the side walls 3| also converge. A gate 34 is pivotally mounted as at 35 on the outside of the hopper and is adapted to slide cooperatively over the open end of the spout 33 so as to control the flow of material therefrom. A suitable handle 36 is connected to the gate 34 for efiecting manual operation thereof.

The hopper 29 is mounted upon the carriage 19 of the vehicle by means of a framework secured to the underside of the bottom wall 32.

This framework includes a pair of vertical spaced apart members 4d, the lower end portions being welded to the opposite rear corners of a horizontally extending plate 4| the forward edge of which is welded to the bottom wall 32 of the hopper adjacent the upper end 7 r of the spout 33. The lowermost ends of the vertical members 46 are provided with openings for cooperatively receiving the ends of a supporting shaft extended through the tubular member of the carriage. Short'strap mem bers 42 fasten the upper portions of the vertical members 46 to the adjacent upper portions of the carriage side plates 26. a

Attention is directed to the fact that the lower portion of the hopper 29, or the lower'end of the spout 33, depends beneath the carriage so that asthe carriage is moved to its lowermost position upon the upright structure the spout is lowered substantially into contact with the ground. The upper end of the hopper is thus brought as low as possible permitting it readily to be filled directly from the discharge chute of the concrete mixer or from a truck used to deliver ready'mixed concrete to the site of. the

mixing plant. being loaded the hopper may be raised up on the upright structure a slight distance sufiiciently to clear the ground in it may be transported to the pouring location. Ifthe tops of the forms into which the concrete is to be poured are relatively high above the ground the hopper may be raised to any position upon the upright structure and thehopper contents discharged directlythereinto. It will be observed that the discharge spout of the hop per projects a considerable distance forwardly of the vehicle so that the spout may be brought into'a position over the upper end of the forms without requiring any other conveyor or chute. In this connection it will also be noted that the spout depends below the supporting frame member 4! so that the lower edge ofthe spout may also be dropped a slight distance into the formto insure thatnone of the concrete will be spilled on the outside and thus wasted.

For removing the hopper from the carriage it maybe loweredonto a block of wood posi-' tione'd beneath the horizontal plate 4| which is substantially beneath the center of the hopper. The fastening links 42 may then be disconnected from the carriage side plates and'the supportlif-ting element secured in place. a I

In Figs. 4 to 6 is shown another form 'or hopper arrangement whichv may. be mounted upon the .vehicle as previously described interchangeably withthe hopper 29 and. which is particularly suitablefor use in laying concrete slabs. {In this instance. the opposite side walls 59 of the hopper49, instead of. converging toward a relatively narrow pouring spout at .the lower may be backed away and another type of load After "vehicle which 7 position welded thereto throughout the full length of the wall so as to prevent bulging of the bottom wall when the hopper is fully loaded. A gate is hinged as at 56 onto the front wall 51 of the hopper for controlling flow of material through the opening 53. Outward bulging of the forwardwall is prevented by the provision of an angle iron 58 adjacent the hinge 56. The lower edge of the gate 55 is also stiifened throughout its entire: length by an angular member as weldedthereto.

The gate 55 is controlled by means of a lever mechanism shown more clearly in the view of Fig. 4 and comprising a manual operating lever 6i pivotally secured as at 62 onto one ofthe side walls of the hopper.. An angular extension 63 of the lever 65 is pivotally connected intermediate its ends to an overcenter link 65, the opposite end of link 65 being connected to the upper end f the triangular plate 66. The plate 66 is rigidly weldedto one end of a shaft it rotatably mounted upon the lower surface of the bottom wall of the hopper and extending t'hefull width thereof, the lower end of the. plate 65 being connected by means of link?! to the side flangeiof the gate 55;- On the opposite side of the hopper with respect to that shown in Fig. 4* the shaft. 19 is similarly connected'by means including plate 13 to the corresponding end of the gate 55. The gate 55is locked in the-closed condition by virtue of the overcenter position of the link 55, the end of the'leverportion 63 being provided with a stop which bears against the upper edge of the link 65-to retain the'linkage connection in the overcenter condition. Upon movement of the operat- 7 depends a considerable distance below the lowermost portion of the carriage !9 so that as the carriage is moved to the lowermost position upon the upright structure of the vehicle the lower end of the hopper extends relatively closely adjacent the'ground. By reason of the'fact that the dis chargeopening at the bottom of the hopperextends the full width thereof the hopper contents may be spreadout in a layer ofhsubstantially uniform depth the 'full width of the hopper thereby saving considerable time which is ordinarily required for spreading concrete which is dumped in a pile. It will be understood that in spreading concrete from the hopper theveh'icle-is driven in reverse direction." By reason of the reinforcing members 54 and 59 the concrete dumped from the hopper. may be smoothly spread across a surface being covered. When the vehicle is driven in reverse the horizontal leg of the member 59 acts as a'spreader and the vehicle may be driven forward while the horizontal leg of the member 54 acts as a follow-up spreader. The vertical leg members may act as bulldozer blades t'o'respread surfaces which may have been covered too deeply in the first distribution of the material. Likewise, the horizontal legs of the members 54 and 59 may be used as tampers or packers, to insure the formation of dense concrete, by raising and lowering the carriage short distances when the vehicle is stationary or moving slowly.

Having described the invention in what are considered to be preferred embodiments thereof it is desired that it be understood that the specific details shown and described are merely illustrative and that the invention may be carried out by other means.

What we claim is: 7

1. In a vehicle apparatus of the class described, an upright on the forward end of said vehicle, a carriage mounted for vertical movement on said upright, a hopper secured to said carriage and movable vertically therewith, said hopper having a bottom wall sloping downwardly and forwardly of said vehicle and extending substantially the full width thereof, a horizontal opening extending the full width of the lower end of said bottom wall, and a gate controlling flow of material from said opening.

2. In a vehicle apparatus of the class described, an upright on the forward end of said vehicle, a carriage mounted for vertical movement on said upright, a hopper mounted on said carriage, said hopper having a bottom wall sloping downwardly and forwardly of said vehicle, bracket frame means secured to the lower side of said bottom wall, means for removably attaching said bracket frame means to said carriage, and a gate controlled opening at the lower end of said hopper, said bracket frame means comprising a substantially horizontal portion located centrally of said hopper and upon which when removed from said carriage.

3. In a vehicle apparatus of the class described, an upright on the forward end of said vehicle, a carriage mounted for vertical movement on said upright, a hopper mounted on said carriage, said hopper having a bottom wall sloping downwardly and forwardly of said vehicle, bracket frame means secured to the lower side of said bottom wall, means for removably attaching said bracket frame means to said carriage, and a gate controlled opening at the lower end of said hopper, said bracket frame means including a lowermost horizontally extending member substantially under the center of said hopper by means of which said hopper may be supported in removing same from said carriage.

said hopper may rest' said gate and including 4. In a vehicle apparatus of the class described, an upright on the forward end of said vehicle, a carriage mounted for vertical movement on said upright, a hopper mounted on said carriage and including a forwardly inclined bottom wall and an upright front wall terminating at a level above the lower edge of said bottom wall, said hopper having a width substantially equal to the width of said vehicle, an upright gate pivoted at the lower edge of said front wall and extending to the lower edge of said bottom wall to define a substantially horizontal opening extending the full width of said hopper when the gate is swun open, and reinforcing members extending the full width of the outer surface of the lower edges of said bottom wall and of said gate, each of said reinforcing members comprising a portion extending substantially horizontally outward from the lower edge of the reinforced edge and a portion extending upwardly and spaced from the reinforced edge.

5. In a vehicle apparatus of the class described, an upright on the forward end of said vehicle, a carriage mounted for vertical movement on said upright, a hopper mounted on said carriage and includin a forwardly inclined bottom wall and an upright front wall terminating at a level above the lower edge of said bottom Wall, said hopper having a width substantially equal to the width of said vehicle, an upright gate pivoted at the lower edge of said front wall and extending to the lower edge of said bottom wall to define a substantially horizontal opening extending the full width of said hopper when said gate is swung open, and a reinforcing structure extending along the lower edge of each of said bottom wall and of a horizontal portion extending upwardly from the reinforced edge.

, HAROLD A. WAGNER.

GUSTAVE H. WAGNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

